GMO crops keep food cheap, safe

February 18, 2014

I love farming and everything that comes with it. Most of all, I love the people in agriculture and the work that we accomplish, namely providing a plentiful food supply for the country. I take issue when we are attacked. When hearing derogatory words about GMO crops, Popeye’s words come to mind “That’s all I can stands, I can’t stands no more.”

Fact: With GMO crops we have less insect crop damage and less competition from weeds, which equates to more grain production with GMO crops, which results in a more plentiful and cheaper food supply.

Fact: Less herbicide has been used since the inception of GMO crops. On our farm we use 50 percent less herbicide on our corn crop than we did before GMO crops.

Fact: Less chemical insecticide is used since the inception of GMO crops. Twenty years ago almost every corn planter in the country came equipped with insecticide applicators. Today, virtually all new corn planters do not.

Fact: No one has ever gotten sick from eating a GMO crop. Yes there are studies out there by rogue “so-called” scientists that claim this or that, but when these “so-called” studies are evaluated by other scientists they cannot be substantiated. They are deemed flawed.

GMO crops ensure a cheaper, safer and more plentiful food supply for this country. Many of the people who like to bash GMO crops are fortunate financially and have plenty of food in their refrigerators. The next time you “GMO bashers” want to spread unsubstantiated fear among the public and make it more difficult for farmers to operate, think about local families who depend on affordable food.

FACT: Americans spend a lower percentage of their income on food than anywhere else in the world.